


Better than Revenge

by Belle_Schuyler



Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Enemies to Friends, Infidelity, Miscarriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:35:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26783758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Belle_Schuyler/pseuds/Belle_Schuyler
Summary: Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn’s *interesting* relationship begins on a warm summer morning in 1825.
Relationships: Anne Boleyn & Catherine of Aragon, Catherine of Aragon & Mary I of England, Maria (Six) & Catherine of Aragon
Kudos: 27





	1. The story starts when it was hot and it was summer and...

**Author's Note:**

> I tried to keep it as historically accurate as possible but some things may have been changed to best present the story I had in mind.

Catherine of Aragon felt as if she were floating on air as she woke up alone on a warm summer morning. Her silky bedclothes bunched up around the curves of her body, and her feathery duvet balanced out the breeze fluttering in from the open window.

As she sat up and leaned against the headboard, there was a knock at her bedroom door.

“Catalina? Are you up?”

“Maria! Come in!”

Catherine’s lady in waiting poked her head into the room with a grin.

“Good morning!”

“Good morning to you too, your majesty! You seem chipper.”

“Just in a good mood, I guess. Hard not to be, on a morning like this.”

“I couldn’t agree more. Are you ready to get dressed?”

“Of course.” 

Catherine tossed the covers to the side and took Maria’s hands as she pulled her out of bed, landing on the floor with a slight waddle.

“And how is the little prince?” Maria asked, placing a gentle hand on the Queen’s belly.

“I can only hope he’s doing well.” Catherine mused, looking down fondly.

“Henry must be thrilled.” The other girl offered, pulling Catherine’s shift off over her head.

“Right...” Catherine’s thoughts trailed off as she took her hair out of a bun.

“You mean...he’s not excited?”

“No, I don’t think it’s that. I don’t think he even believes me, Maria.”

“Believes you? About what?”

“That I can give him an heir. That I’m even expecting in the first place.”

“That’s horrible.” Maria said sadly as she worked on the Queen’s hair. “He seems so fond of our dear Mary.”

“Not as fond as he would be of a son. And of course, I could never tell her that.”

“Of course not. But Mary’s a bright little girl. She’ll figure it out eventually, if she hasn’t already.”

Catherine ran her hands over her face with a sigh. “I just hope this baby gives us a chance to secure her a place on the throne too.”

“I hope so too. But! Let’s not worry about that right now.” Maria responded as she finished lacing Catherine’s corset. “It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining, and did you hear we got a new girl in court?”

“I didn’t! What’s she like?”

“A bit of a free spirit, if I’m being honest. But she seems nice enough. Anne Boleyn is her name. She’s a pretty young thing, too, and I think that’s just what we need around here.”

“What do you mean by that?” Catherine asked, her spine stiffening.

“Oh, I didn’t mean it like that, dear! If anything, you two could be a force to be reckoned with at court. She might even become your friend.”

“Or Henry’s.” She responded ruefully, biting the corner of her lip.

“I know the King’s...relations...are hard on you, dear.” Maria said sympathetically, trying to gage her friend’s reaction.

“It’s like he’s already trying to replace me, Maria.” Catherine’s eyes were wide and threatening to water. “Like me, Mary, the nearly thirty years we’ve been married...it seems as if they don’t mean anything to him. We don’t even share a bedroom anymore.”

“Don’t lose heart, Catie.” Maria said, gently pulling her into her arms. “You’re still the Queen, whether Henry likes it or not. And there’s nothing even he can do to change that.” 

“Thank you, darling.” Catherine responded, squeezing Maria’s hand.

“And speaking of which, we have a busy day today so...chin up, shoulders high, and I will see you later.” Maria playfully tapped the Queen’s nose, receiving a small but genuine smile before heading out the door.

Catherine straightened her heavy skirts with her knuckles and took a deep breath as she walked into the hallway.

Turning the corner in a daze, she nearly knocked over the person turning the corner in front of her.

“Ooof!”

“Oh, I’m sorry!” Catherine subconsciously placed a hand on the stranger’s shoulder as their eyes met.

“It’s alright.” The other girl responded, dimples forming at her cheeks. “You must be Her Majesty, Queen Catherine?” 

She gave a sort of awkward bow before looking at her expectingly.

“Yes, just Catherine is fine. And who are you? I don’t believe we’ve met.”

“Oh, of course! I’m Anne Boleyn. I joined the British court just recently, I’m originally from France.”

“I see.” Catherine said as she discretely looked her up and down.

Maria was right, she was very pretty. A slender face, bright eyes, and a winning smile. She seems just the type to be leaving Henry’s bedroom late at night...

“Anyways, I’m sure you’re busy and I don’t mean to keep you.” Anne added with a wave. “But I look forward to seeing you again, Your Maj...er, Catherine.” 

“As do I.” Catherine replied with a curt bow of her head.

Anne passed her and Catherine continued on her way, in a substantially worse mood than when she woke up.


	2. She took him faster than you can say sabotage

“Mama!” 

Eleven year-old Mary ran the hall and to her waiting mother, who wrapped her in her arms.

“Hi, baby! How were your lessons?”

“They were okay. I’m glad they’re over, though.” 

“Well, I was thinking, it’d be a shame to waste such a beautiful day inside. How would you like to take a walk with me?”

“Okay! Can Dad come with us?”

“I’m sorry, honey.” Catherine said sadly, running her hand through her daughter’s hair. “I haven’t seen your father all day. He must be busy.”

“Oh...alright. That’s fine!” Mary responded as she slacked her shoulders.

The two walked together down the hall towards the entrance to the gardens, talking pleasantly until they reached the King’s closed bedroom doors. 

One of the heavy doors strained open. Anne Boleyn sheepishly poked her head out, her face turning cherry red when she noticed the Queen and Princess. She stepped out into the hall, one of her sleeves slacking and revealing her bare shoulder.

“Your Majesty, Princess...how do you do?”

Mary opened her mouth and made a noise of protest, but Catherine placed her hand on the younger girl’s shoulder and interrupted. 

“We’re fine, thank you. We were just leaving.”

“A-alright.” Anne responded with an anxious nod as they passed by.

“You can go back in, for all I care.” Catherine called back, clasping Mary’s hand with an iron grip. “No use in hiding anymore.”

Anne shrunk back into the bedroom in shame, the door latching softly as Catherine stormed away to her quarters.

She shut the door behind her and Mary as she sank to her bed in defeat, burying her head in her hands. For Mary’s sake, she took a deep breath and looked back up. Her daughter refused to meet her eyes.

“I’m sorry you had to see that, Mary.”

“It doesn’t matter. I figured that’s what Father was spending all his time in there for, anyway.”

Catherine shook her head. 

“You shouldn’t have to worry about things like that.”

“Well, when I’m Queen, I’ll have more important things to worry about than romantic affairs. I’ll be a better leader than father ever was.” Mary looked at her mother with a renewed zeal.

“I...I’m sure you would be, sweetheart. But you know, none of these things are certain.”

“I know. But if the new baby does turn out to be an heir, we could make some kind of arrangement...”

“I’d like nothing more than to do that for you, Mary. But we’ll just have to wait and see, okay?”

The Princess sighed discontentedly. “Alright.”

Catherine brushed a lock of hair off of Mary’s shoulder and traced her finger gently across her jaw. “Hey. How about we go have that walk? I’m free for the rest of the day, and no one else will be out in the gardens. You can talk to me about whatever you want.”

A smile played on Mary’s lips.

“Okay.”

As they went to head out, Mary grabbed her mother’s hand.

“Hey Mom?”

“Yes dear?”

She wrapped her arms around Catherine’s waist.

“Thank you.”


	3. She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for a referenced miscarriage

Catherine’s eyes burned so terribly that tears couldn’t possibly flow. She kept her head buried in her pillows and tried to muster any sort of prayer, anything to take her mind off of the unbearable feelings of grief and betrayal that were weighing her down.

She picked her head up just long enough to hear a soft voice behind her locked door. 

“Catalina?”

The Queen dragged her feet to the door and unlocked it with strenuous effort. She opened it a hair, allowing Maria to slip in.

“I heard the news.” Maria said, carefully watching Catherine’s expression. All she could do was nod.

“Come here.” Maria wrapped her arm protectively around her friend as they sat down together on the foot of the bed.

“I know this is all...terrible. No other way to put it. But surely there’s a way around this, right? It’s not like it’s the first time Henry got another woman pregnant. Why should Anne be any different?”

“I think this time is different.” Catherine said, hugging her arms to herself and staring down at the floor. “I think this was the last straw for him.”

“What do you mean?” Maria asked, raising a confused eyebrow. Catherine finally met her eyes, her voice heart crushingly monotone.

“I lost the baby, Maria.”

Maria’s face softened as she pulled Catherine closer to her.

“Oh, my dear.” She said with a heavy sigh. “I’m so sorry.”

The Queen only rested her head on Maria’s shoulder, using all her strength to not burst into tears. 

The sound of soft footsteps coming down the hall caused both women to jump.

“Were you followed?” Mouthed Catherine, her eyes wide. Maria only responded with a shake of her head as the footsteps grew louder.

“Mama?” A voice called at the door, as Catherine breathed a sigh of relief.

“Mary. Come in, baby.”

The girl walked in, closed off and anxious as she looked at her mother and Maria in turn. Her eyes were bloodshot and her shoulders shook as she sniffled. 

Catherine wordlessly opened her arms, and her daughter fell into her lap. She kept a protective arm around her waist as she ran her free hand through the Princess’s hair. What neither of them knew was that this would be the last chance they would be able to hold each other for quite some time.


	4. I underestimated just who I was dealing with

Mary knocked on the heavy door in front of her, and was greeted with a reply from a silken voice from inside.

“Come in.”

Anne Boleyn sat by the fireplace, with a sleeping, red-headed baby swaddled in her arms.

“You wanted to see me?” Mary asked, rubbing her footon the back of her opposite ankle.

“Yes. Come sit down.” Anne patted the floor next to her. Mary cautiously did so, her shoulders tense and her eyes curiously watching her stepmother.

“I have a letter from your mother.” Anne whispered, causing Mary’s eyes to light up.

“You can’t be serious.” 

Anne opened the book next to her and pulled out an envelope hidden in its pages. The flawless script denoting “Mary” on the front undeniably belonged to her mother.

Mary looked hesitantly between Anne and the letter she held out to her.

“What’s the catch?”

“There’s no catch, Mary. I’m trying to help you.” Anne said, placing the envelope on Mary’s lap. “I know your father has been harsh on you.”

“No thanks to you.” Mary responded bitterly. Anne sighed, but tried to remain patient.

“He listens to me about as well as he does to you, I promise.”

“I don’t know about that.” Mary said, crossing her arms and leaning back.

“Father had so many mistresses, but only one he was willing to break from the Church for.”

Anne bit her lip and considered the girl in front of her before responding.

“Maybe you’re right. The point is, I want to help you. Maggie and I, we think we can get letters to and from your mother.”

“Really?” 

Anne nodded and passed the envelope back towards Mary, who finally accepted. As she went to open it, she looked back at Anne.

“Father won’t know?”

“I swear.”

Mary nodded, content, and tucked the letter under her arm. Suddenly, her eyes fell to the baby girl in Anne’s arms. 

Her stepmother looked up with the ghost of a smile.

“Do you want to hold her?”


	5. No amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity

“So what happened next?” Catherine asked, adjusting the gold chains on her costume.

“Well, you know, we were able to get letters to you for a little while after that...” Anne said, watching her reflection in the dressing room mirror as she fixed one of her space buns.

“Yes, but I never knew you had anything to do with it!”

“I planned it that way. If Mary reacted like that, I knew I had no chance of getting you to trust me. Anyway, we kept it a secret, but then you passed away, and...”

“Mary was devastated.” Catherine whispered.

Anne nodded sadly.

“Henry wouldn’t even let her go to the funeral. But I was thinking about what she said, and I talked Henry into wearing yellow mourning clothes.”

“Wait - mourning clothes?”

“Yeah? Yellow is the color of mourning in Spain, right?”

“Well, yes, but I had no idea you knew that! I thought it was some kind of joke!”

“That’s how everyone seemed to take it. But I swear, I meant it as a tribute to you.”

“That’s...really sweet, Anne.” Catherine said, reaching over to squeeze her free hand and causing Anne to smile.

“Fifteen minutes until the show, girls!” Maria called as she walked past the dressing room.

“Thanks!” Anne said, turning around to search for her lipstick.

Maria met Catherine’s eye and cocked her head questioningly. Catherine could only smile in response, knowing now that there genuinely are some things better than revenge.

**Author's Note:**

> I may end up adding more eventually but this is all I have for now! I hope you guys enjoyed and let me know if you want more of this story! I love exploring Aragon and Boleyn’s dynamic.


End file.
